The present invention relates to a rongeur, and more particularly to a rongeur having drainage apertures.
The rongeur is a medical instrument used for a variety of purposes. It is particularly useful for removing small amounts of bone, cartilage or other body material from inside small spaces of the knee or between vertebrae. A rongeur usually includes a long fixed shank with an anvil or footplate at its distal end and a handle at its proximal end. A cross bar slideably engages the shank and reciprocates thereon by means of a pivotable second handle. Cutting edges on the distal end of the crossbar bite against the footplate to cut away a small portion of tissue with each reciprocation of the crossbar.
For precise operation of the instrument tight tolerances between the mating parts is preferred. While enhancing precise operation, these tolerances can make effective cleaning of the instrument difficult. Blood and other bodily matter with becomes trapped between the shank and crossbar can be difficult to remove. Failure to remove such matter can lead to incomplete sterilization. Accordingly, it is desirable to allow access to these parts during cleaning and sterilization.
The Janzen U.S. Pat. No. 6,126,674, incorporated herein by reference, attempts to solve this problem by providing a removable crossbar. A slot in the top of the pivotable handle receives a pin on the crossbar. A rotating disc on the fixed handle abuts a surface on the pivotable handle to limit spread between the handles. Rotation of the disc into an alternate orientation allow a slightly broader spread between the handles allowing the crossbar to move back distally off of the pin and to then be removed. Nevertheless, in some instances, operating personnel may forget to disassemble the rongeur.
A rongeur according to the present invention overcomes these and other limitations of the prior art. It comprises an elongated shank having a distal end and a proximal end and a footplate at the distal end of the elongated shank. An elongated crossbar is adapted to reciprocate axially with respect to the shank. It has a distal end and a proximal end and a cutting surface at its distal end whereby to cut tissue between the cutting surface and the footplate. One or more drainage apertures penetrate through the shank into a space between the shank and the crossbar.
Preferably a plurality of apertures penetrate the shank into the space between the shank and the crossbar. They may be located adjacent the footplate. In one preferred aspect of the invention, the shank has a slot on an upper surface thereof and the crossbar has a spline on a lower surface thereof, with the spline being disposed within the slot, and drainage apertures penetrating the shank into the slot.
Preferably, the drainage holes are countersunk facing the crossbar whereby to encourage drainage of liquid into the one or more holes. The surface facing the crossbar through which the holes penetrate may be sloped toward the drainage holes to encourage liquid to drain therethrough.
A method, according to the present invention, is provided for sterilizing a rongeur comprising an elongated shank having a distal end and a proximal end, a footplate at the distal end of the elongated shank, and an elongated crossbar adapted to reciprocate axially with respect to the shank, the crossbar having a distal end and a proximal end and a cutting surface at its distal end whereby to cut tissue between the cutting surface and the footplate. The method comprises the steps of subjecting the rongeur to a sterilizing fluid and passing the sterilizing fluid into a space between the crossbar and shank through one or more apertures through the shank. The sterilizing fluid can be steam. The sterilizing fluid can be drained from the space through the apertures, as for instance steam condensate.